Deadlines are approaching for four startup programs for Nova Scotian entrepreneurs, all of which offer access to five-figure grants: GreenShoots, Sprint,the Accelerate Program and Spark Nova Scotia.

GreenShoots is the product of a collaboration between Innovacorp, the Nova Scotia government's early-stage venture capital agency, andh Ontario-based Bioenterprise Corporation.  It will allow agriculture, biotech and cleantech companies to compete for up to $40,000 apiece.

Applicants to GreenShoots must submit a written pitch by Sept. 1. Shortlisted entrepreneurs will then pitch to a panel of judges via Zoom on Sept. 22. The event will be closed to the public.

The Sprint competition, also offered by Innovacorp, will award $25,000 grants to four or five startups, with the goal of helping winners reach technological or business milestones on a short time horizon.

The program includes two streams: Phase 1 for companies that have not received Sprint funding before and Phase 2 for companies that have been awarded prior Sprint grants. Companies can win Sprint funding up to three times. The application deadline is Sept. 8.

Accelerate, a third Innovacorp program, will award eight startups $50,000 grants and access to a six-month business training program featuring expert coaching, monthly workshops, office space and market intelligence services.

Like Sprint, the deadline to apply is Sept. 8. Shortlisted companies will pitch to judges on Sept. 24 and 25 and winners will be notified on Sept. 28.

Spark is a competition for Nova Scotian entrepreneurs based outside metro Halifax, and it's organized by Nava Develop with the backing of the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency. 

The Spark competition is divided into three zones – South West, North, and Cape Breton – to cover all parts of the province outside the capital. A total of $125,000 in cash will be awarded in each zone, with no company receiving more than $50,000. That means there will be at least three winners in each zone. The deadline to enter is Sept. 8. 

Anyone interested in these programs can find more information and application details at the links above.